2 days after Ganderbal attack, 40 rounded up, searches underway

Nearly 40 people have been rounded up for questioning in connection with Sunday’s major attack in Gagangir village of Ganderbal district that claimed seven lives, including a doctor, official sources said on Tuesday.

The sources told The Tribune that the suspects’ questioning was underway, however, no one had been arrested in the ongoing investigation so far.

A doctor and six employees of a private infrastructure company involved in the construction of a Z-Morh tunnel on the Srinagar-Leh highway were killed in the attack. It was also for the first time that militants had targeted employees of an infrastructure project in the Valley.

As per the sources, the two attackers, who are believed to have infiltrated through the Gurez sector of Bandipora, have reportedly fled into the nearby dense forests, just opposite the camp, after carrying out the attack.

“We are carrying out searches in different areas of the nearby forests and are hopeful to get success soon,” said an official.

As per the sources, the security agencies have also spotted the attackers in the CCTV cameras installed at the project site.

L-G highlights need to secure key infra projects

On Tuesday, J&K L-G Manoj Sinha visited Gagangir, interacted with officials and chaired a security review meeting. During his visit, the Lt Governor directed the officials that the security grid should be further strengthened to ensure zero terror incidents in order to push rapid social and economic development.

A spokesperson said, “The L-G underlined the need for securing the vital infrastructure projects across J&K and putting in place a multi-pronged and foolproof mechanism for coordination with project implementing agencies to prevent security breaches.”

He said the safety and security of workers and officers working on key infrastructure projects was the government’s highest priority. The L-G emphasised “the need for stricter access control and regular patrolling around the project sites”. He also directed the security forces and the police to pro-actively conduct coordinated counter-terrorism operations to wipe out terrorism in J&K.

CM meets deceased doctor’s kin in Naidgam

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday visited Naidgam, Budgam, to express his condolences to the family of Dr Shahnawaz, one of the victims. A spokesperson said Omar had announced that the government would bear all expenses related to the civil services education and training of Shahnawaz's son, pledging to fulfill his father's dream of seeing him become an officer.